Terminology -branded vs non-branded

[TheGrid]

I never say nor used these terms before joining SEO moz. can someone explain what this is and how it affects your analytics. SEOmoz actually has a way to select branded words and treats them differently. What is the point or benefit of this? How do you use this to help you with analytical deconstruction.

[KeriMorgret]

Hi Kynduvme, I'll take a stab at this, and let others add their comment as well.

Branded keywords are generally those of your brand, such as your company name or a product name. For example, my husband and I run a business called Strike Models where we sell model warships that shoot and sink each other. For us, "Strike Models" is a branded search. If I see that in my analytics, I know that someone is searching for me because they have heard of our company.

If I see "model ship plans" or "rc battleships", that's not a branded search. I'm appearing for some of my keywords, and the people may not have heard of my particular brand before. It's usually easier to rank for your branded terms, and thus helps separate that out from your other keywords.

Does that help?

edit: here's the post we made when branded keywords were introduced:

http://www.seomoz.org/blog/introducing-branded-keyword-rules-and-metrics